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This gem: "Once, technology meant stuff that went to the moon…cured fatal diseases…extended the human lifespan […] miraculous breakthroughs that altered lives

by hwstar 11y ago

This gem: "Once, technology meant stuff that went to the moon…cured fatal diseases…extended the human lifespan […] miraculous breakthroughs that altered lives […] Now, “tech” means something very different: apps that…hails taxis…summon butlers…automatically call dog walkers…gadgets that remind you have a meeting…turn on your thermostat for you […] It’s not that the latter is bad. But it is a fact that the latter is trivial." The VC crowd is hooked short term development which has the potential to make them rich quickly. This may be about to change. Very few software-only tech companies have not been focusing solving hard problems which are not trivial, as these types of problems require much longer product development schedules, and a therefore much more capital to invest.

sounds 11y ago
The low-barrier-to-entry plays are getting lots of attention, while the ones that take more capital, research, a breakthrough, or all three, are also getting some attention. The article also simply states the obvious: trivial stuff "is trivial." This "culling of the herd" can happen continuously, or there can be a flood of investment leading to a bubble. Lots has been blogged about how to make different mistakes [1], how to think different [2], or just how this time will be different [3]. Failing is part of innovating. "We avoided dying till we got rich." - pg [4] [1] Just one of many: http://www.inc.com/niel-robertson/brilliant-failures/dot-com-mistake-silicon-valley-start-ups-still-make.html http://www.inc.com/niel-robertson/brilliant-failures/dot-com... [2] http://www.thenational.ae/business/technology/apple-is-the-true-survivor-of-the-dotcom-bubble http://www.thenational.ae/business/technology/apple-is-the-t... [3] https://avataric.wordpress.com/2015/08/14/startup-culture-everything-old-is-new-again/ https://avataric.wordpress.com/2015/08/14/startup-culture-ev... [4] http://www.paulgraham.com/die.html http://www.paulgraham.com/die.html
- eevilspock 11y ago
  > The low-barrier-to-entry plays One of the reasons the barrier is so low is because you often don't have to ask your users to pay. One of the many ways advertising undermines the way the free market is supposed to work.

by hwstar 11y ago

sounds 11y ago

The low-barrier-to-entry plays are getting lots of attention, while the ones that take more capital, research, a breakthrough, or all three, are also getting some attention. The article also simply states the obvious: trivial stuff "is trivial." This "culling of the herd" can happen continuously, or there can be a flood of investment leading to a bubble. Lots has been blogged about how to make different mistakes [1], how to think different [2], or just how this time will be different [3]. Failing is part of innovating. "We avoided dying till we got rich." - pg [4] [1] Just one of many: http://www.inc.com/niel-robertson/brilliant-failures/dot-com-mistake-silicon-valley-start-ups-still-make.html http://www.inc.com/niel-robertson/brilliant-failures/dot-com... [2] http://www.thenational.ae/business/technology/apple-is-the-true-survivor-of-the-dotcom-bubble http://www.thenational.ae/business/technology/apple-is-the-t... [3] https://avataric.wordpress.com/2015/08/14/startup-culture-everything-old-is-new-again/ https://avataric.wordpress.com/2015/08/14/startup-culture-ev... [4] http://www.paulgraham.com/die.html http://www.paulgraham.com/die.html

eevilspock 11y ago
> The low-barrier-to-entry plays One of the reasons the barrier is so low is because you often don't have to ask your users to pay. One of the many ways advertising undermines the way the free market is supposed to work.